1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a suction tube system and, in particular, to a cardiotomy suction tube system with multiple tips.
2. Description of the Related Art
It is known to use cardiotomy suction systems to reduce blood in the operative field during open surgical operations. A conventional cardiotomy suction system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,205,677 which issued on Jun. 3, 1980 to Engstrom. The cardiotomy suction system disclosed by Engstrom comprises a cardiotomy suction tube provided with a tip. The tip is placed in the operative field and blood is drawn into the cardiotomy suction tube. The rate that blood is drawn from the operative field into the cardiotomy suction tube is controlled by a valve block. A surgeon is able to selectively control the rate that blood is drawn from field of surgery by actuating the valve block.
However, conventional cardiotomy suction systems such as the type disclosed by Engstrom may be limited because they are generally only provided with a single card iotomy suction tube with a single tip. Since a single cardiotomy suction tube may also not be sufficient to adequately remove blood from the operative field, thereby necessitating the use of a plurality of cardiotomy suction systems during surgical operations. It may also be necessary to switch back and forth between a flexible tip and a rigid tip during the same surgical operations.